Adam Rank: Steelers. The defense is going to make things interesting, but there is still enough offensive firepower to win this division.

Alex Gelhar: Bengals. Their defense is still stacked, and the offense is built around Andy Dalton not needing to shoulder the whole loud. Given Pittsburgh's losses on offense, I'll take Cincy to win the North.

Brian Billick: Patriots. The Patriots will play two divisional opponents while Brady serves his four-game suspension, but at the end of the year, it won't matter. New England is still the class of the AFC East and it's not really even that close.

Elliot Harrison: Jaguars. Give me the Jaguars -- although the preseason bodes well for the Texans on several fronts. Jacksonville finally has the horses on defense to at least be viable. The offense is already capable.

David Carr: Titans. I think this is going to be the best division this season. The Titans' defense should be just as good -- if not better -- than it was in 2015. On offense, Marcus Mariota has looked good in the preseason and the run game should carry this team to quite a few wins.

Ike Taylor: Texans. The Texans won the division last year, and they have so much more talent this time around.

Dave Dameshek: Texans. Cynics scoff at the money spent on Osweiler, but he'd have to be an abject bum to not thrive with the skill-position players he's got around him. And by the way, the D will again be dominant. (10-6, No. 3 seed)

Elliot Harrison: Chiefs. Kansas City will have its hands full in what should amount to a tight race in the AFC West. With the Raiders ascending but unproven, and the Broncos starting Trevor Siemian, this should be Andy Reid's best shot to win the division.

Dave Dameshek: Chiefs. There won't be much room between the best and worst in the West this season, but I'll go with Andy Reid, who's fielded a winning team in 12 of his 17 seasons as an NFL head coach. (9-7, No. 4 seed)

Chris Wesseling: Raiders. Don't look now, but the Raiders have assembled one of the deepest rosters in the conference, while the Broncos hope to avert disaster at the game's most valuable position for the second straight season.

Bucky Brooks: Denver Broncos. The Broncos suffer a bit of a Super Bowl hangover during the first half of the season, but the defense sparks a run to the top wild-card slot with a dominant stretch run that includes three shutout performances in the final eight games.

Elliot Harrison: Oakland Raiders. The Raiders are at the doorstep of something special. Can they overcome recent history? I think they can. They are as talented as the other teams in their division. They also enjoyed a productive offseason that should get them 10 wins.

Ike Taylor: Broncos. The Broncos might not win the division, but they are too good to not make the playoffs. We will see them in January again.

Dave Dameshek: Bengals. Since 2013, the Bengals have had one of the league's three or four most-talented rosters ... but during that time, they have won the same number of playoff games as the Browns. (9-7, No. 5 seed)

AFC WILD CARD 2

Judy Battista: Denver Broncos. They won the Super Bowl with middling quarterback play for much of last season. They might get even less than that from that unsettled position this year, but the defense will carry them again.

Gil Brandt: Broncos. This is the most wild card team I've ever seen. The defense, which dominated in 2015, should be strong again, but second-year pro Trevor Siemian is a major variable at quarterback. He's very smart, and I think his decision-making will be good, but aside from his average NFL arm, there's so much we don't know about him.

Brian Billick: Broncos. Their quarterback situation is terrifying, but they are still the defending champs. And it's not like Peyton Manning gave them an elite level of play at the position last season.

Bucky Brooks: Bengals. Marvin Lewis gets the Bengals into the playoffs for the sixth consecutive time with a stern approach that results in more disciplined play from the defense's problem children (Adam Jones and Vontaze Burfict).